Dare You by Ella Frank
Kieran
“IT’S HOT AS balls today.” Sanderson, eloquent as ever, tossed a bottle of water in my direction as he settled on the back of the engine and took a swig out of his own. There was a huge tech expo happening at Soldier Field today, and our firehouse was one of the lucky ones who’d been tasked with public outreach duty.
We were parked at the west entrance of the stadium to increase visibility for our station, not to mention keeping watch over the thousands of people pouring inside for a day filled with the latest and greatest gadgets—basically, it was a convention for tech geeks and nerds. Two days filled with the best of the best in next-generation technology, showing off their products on a testing floor where they could network with like-minded people and show off to their adoring public.
For us, it was a long-ass day of sitting in the sun and hoping these guys were smart enough to wear a hat and sunscreen and hydrate, in amongst their oohing and aahing over the latest gadget they’d eventually line up overnight to get their hands on.
I’d never understood that mentality. Hell, I was still walking around with a phone that was, what, five years old? Hey, it took me three years to pay it off, and the thing still worked. Why would I need to upgrade?
“It really is fucking miserable out here today.” Brumm took his cap off and wiped the sweat from his brow. “What’d we do to deserve this kind of punishment, anyway?”
“We didn’t do anything. It was our turn.” I guzzled down some water and looked over to where Brumm sat. “I figured you’d enjoy a day out of the station.”
“Maybe if we were working at, I don’t know, a comic-con? At least then there’d be something to look at. Warrior princesses, Catwomen, Black Widows in tight leather suits—”
“Yeah, okay, I get the picture. But you never know. Maybe the love of your life is waiting inside for you right now. You should expand your horizons, Brumm. Think outside the box.”
Olsen scoffed as he came up beside me and handed over a manilla envelope. “Yeah, that ain’t gonna happen. You used the one word he’s allergic to—’think.’”
Brumm flipped Olsen off as I opened the envelope and pulled out the lunch passes. We’d each been given a free meal of choice for the day, and had been waiting for the organizers to bring them down.
With the golden tickets now in hand, I radioed the other engines manning the entrances and let them know we were heading to lunch. They gave the go-ahead, and as I handed the passes out, my stomach growled. It appeared sitting on my ass all morning had worked up an appetite. Either that or my body had been so bored that it was excited by the idea of doing something as simple as eating.
We headed toward the entrance, where security checked the lanyards hanging around our necks, and the second the doors opened, a blast of cool air engulfed us and we let out a collective sigh.
“Okay, I take it back,” Brumm said. “I’m more than happy to take my punishment if it means I get to stand here for the next thirty minutes.”
I rolled my eyes. “It’s not punishment. You’re helping your community.”
“Okay, boy scout. Mind if I go help it by fueling up? I won’t be any use to anyone if I pass out from hunger.”
“Didn’t you scarf down four donuts this morning?” Olsen said, as Brumm and Sanderson began to head off toward the food vendors.
“That was hours ago.”
“Like three.”
“I’m a growing boy, what can I say?”
As those guys headed off to track down some food, Olsen turned to me. “You comin’?”
“In a bit. I thought I’d do a quick walk-through. Can’t hurt to look around, make sure everything looks safe enough on the surface.”
“Boy scout’s right.”
“Maybe so. But you know me, I always like to be prepared.”
“Okay, well, come find us when you’ve done your walk-through.”
“Will do.”
Olsen jogged after the rest of the guys as I turned and headed in the opposite direction. The food vendors were all on one side of the stadium, and the showrooms where the testing, demonstrations, product talks, and presentations were being held were on the other.
As I made my way through the crowds, I noticed several people looking my way. In my boots, bunker pants, and blue CFD t-shirt, I automatically drew attention, as I stood out amongst the casually clothed attendees of today’s expo. Add to that the fact that people seemed fascinated by firefighters in general, and I wasn’t at all surprised by the attention I received.
I made my way down several rows of tables and booths where TV screens and computer monitors flashed up product names and demonstrations, and people gathered around to learn about the latest device that would somehow make their everyday life that much easier.
I don’t know, call me old school, but weren’t these people ever worried about the possibility of something like Skynet really happening? I was.
I’d just reached the end of the first row, where a huge stage was set up for the headliner of the expo, and when I glanced up at the jumbotron above the stage, my feet came to a grinding halt. There, on the massive screen staring out at the crowd, was none other than Sebastian Vogel. Well, his face, anyway—and there was no mistaking that face.
His jet-black hair emphasized his porcelain skin tone, and even without a lick of makeup on, his features were so delicate that they immediately brought to mind the first time I’d seen him, and why I’d mistakenly identified him.
The guy was pretty. Alarmingly so. And with the purple background of the advertisement, it was difficult to look away. The word AnaVoge was written in bold beside him, and underneath that was Sebastian Vogel, CEO and Owner.
AnaVoge—what the hell was that? Clearly something techy that everyone in here would know, since it was one of the headliners. Deciding to take a gamble, I leaned in to the guy standing beside me and asked, “Hey, man, how’s it going?”
The guy looked to be in his early thirties and wore a pair of baggy beige pants with a shirt tucked in at the waist. He had a pair of glasses on and a notepad and pen in hand, and was clearly an attendee. “I’m good. You?”
“I’m good too.” I nodded, trying to think of a segue into the conversation I wanted to have. “Just taking a break to cool down and eat lunch, thought I’d take a look around.”
“Well, you’re in luck. AnaVoge is on in fifteen minutes.”
“Right. AnaVoge…” I glanced back to the jumbotron, where Sebastian’s face stared out at the crowd beginning to gather around the stage. “And what exactly is AnaVoge?”
“More like who is AnaVoge. Sebastian Vogel is one of the most influential leaders in the tech industry right now. He does analytics for a whole bunch of top companies you’d know about, and one of the reasons for that is him. He’s changed the way that companies connect and grow their audience. From social media to website traffic, AnaVoge helps them to restructure their platform and presence to get more traction. He’s the top of the game, has software unlike anyone out there, and comes up with the best strategy plans around. He’s…”
Apparently this guy’s hero. As he continued on and on about all of Sebastian’s top qualities—using words like “algorithms” and “metadata” and a whole bunch of other things I knew nothing about—I naturally tuned out.
My eye caught on something bright and shiny off to the side of the stage, where several people gathered around a tall, distinguished figure in a black tailored suit. He was talking animatedly with those around him, and as he did I noticed several rings of different sizes adorning his hand, and that was what caught the light.
I noted the black hair and almost regal way the man stood, and without even seeing his face, I knew I was looking at Sebastian Vogel.
Not wanting to alert him to my presence just yet, I slowly made my way over, wanting to see this guy in action. He was a puzzle that was getting more complex each time I ran into him. Miss Razzle Dazzle by evening and Mr. Sebastian Vogel, tech giant, by day. If that wasn’t a mind bender, I didn’t know what was.
I circled the group of people until I was standing at the back of the crowd, and watched on with curiosity as Sebastian continued his conversation with the suits and ties. They were asking him things that were way beyond my knowledge of powering on a computer and implementing a quick Google search, and as he answered each and every one of them, his eyes scanned the group.
He passed over me and kept right on going until, yep, there it was, the flicker of recognition in those dark eyes, and he zeroed in on me like a laser beam.
“Well, well, well, if it isn’t my favorite fireman looking in on our little event today.”
Little my ass. There was nothing small about today’s event, and judging by Sebastian’s smirk as he made his way through the group of people toward me, he knew it.
“Allow me to introduce you all.” Sebastian came to a stop beside me and placed a hand on my arm, and as he turned back to the crowd, I noticed his nails were still that dark metallic blue from the day before. “This is Lieutenant Bailey with the Chicago Fire Department. He also happens to be the man who made it possible for me to be here today. He saved me from a terrible fire just the other night.”
Eyes widened as they looked from Sebastian to me, and just as I was about to explain further, he reached out and shook the hand of the man standing directly in front of him.
“Thank you for coming today.” He smiled at the others still hanging on his every word. “If I didn’t get to your question, be sure to stay until the end of the presentation. There’ll be a Q&A.”
They thanked him and moved off toward the stage, where the jumbotron was once again advertising AnaVoge and its enigmatic CEO.
“So.” I slipped my hands into my pockets. “You’re a pretty big deal around here, huh?”
“I’m a big deal anywhere, darling.”
“And you have a jumbotron to prove it.”
His sly smile was almost wolfish. “Among other things.”
“Well, they certainly think so.”
He peered around my shoulder and nodded. “Yes, I believe they do. And what about you?”
“Me?”
“Yes.” One of his perfectly shaped eyebrows arched. “What do you think about me, lieutenant?”
Uh, I didn’t think anything at all. At least I hadn’t until I walked down the row of booths today and saw his face up on an eight-by-eleven-foot screen. Then I got to thinking about the outrageous man who’d shown up to the station in a blouse that reminded me of a party decoration, and who’d worn a designer dress and heels better than most women—
“Lieutenant?”
“Sorry.” I blinked his striking face into focus and gave myself a kick in the ass. Stop acting like a fucking weirdo. “I was just thinking that I don’t understand anything about you.”
When both of his eyebrows rose, I realized how it must’ve sounded and quickly rushed on.
“Your job, I mean. I don’t understand it. Like, at all. Someone tried to explain it to me, but whoosh.” I gestured with a flat hand over my head. “It was way over my head.”
“I see. Then we’re even, because I don’t know that much about your job either, except that you run into fires when others are running out.” Sebastian’s eyes roved down to my bunker pants. “Well, that and you somehow manage to make those horrid pants look like something I wouldn’t mind getting into.”
“Trust me, you wouldn’t want to be in them today. I’m hot as hell.”
“That’s the whole point, handsome.” Sebastian winked at me, and as my brain tried to catch up with the exchange we’d just had, he gestured to the stage. “I have to go. Will you be staying to watch my performance?”
“No, uh, I have to get back to the guys. We’re here until the gates close, and then we’ll be hitting Mulligan’s.”
“Mulligans?”
“Yeah, it’s the local pub.”
“Oh Lord. What I wouldn’t do for a stiff drink right about now.”
I looked over at the ever-increasing crowd and then, before I knew it, heard myself say, “Hey, you know what? You should come with us.”
A deep V formed between Sebastian’s brows. “To a pub?”
The disgust on his face made me chuckle, and for some reason I was more determined than ever now to get him to agree. “Sure. Why not? Unless you have something else planned.”
“I don’t, but—”
“Great, because you said if I need anything I could call, and, well, I’m gonna need a drink tonight.”
Sebastian’s eyes narrowed, and I was sure that look was intimidating to some, but as he’d just pointed out, I ran into burning buildings for a living.
“Oh, come on. You can meet us there. It’s easy enough to find. Only Mulligan’s in Chicago. Surprising, I know.”
“Again, just so we’re clear. You want me to go to a…pub?”
The expression on his face reminded me of Xander—my brother Sean’s fiancé—whenever he was in a particularly snobby mood, and it made me grin. “Yeah, you know, there’s usually a bar, a pool table, music, alcohol…”
A loud, thumping beat began to throb out of the massive speakers around the stage, and Sebastian shook his head. “I must be crazy, but I do owe you and your men.”
“Mulligan’s.” I smirked. “Look it up.”
He walked past me toward the stage, and as he went, an intoxicating scent hit my nose. It reminded me of twilight and thunderstorms, silk sheets and sophistication, and it wasn’t until the radio clipped to my shirt crackled, and Olsen asked where I was, that I realized I was still standing there staring after the puzzling CEO.
